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2 Kings 17
New English Translation

Hoshea’s Reign over Israel

17 In the twelfth year of King Ahaz’s reign over Judah, Hoshea son of Elah became king over Israel. He reigned in Samaria for nine years. 2 He did evil in the sight of[a] the Lord, but not to the same degree as the Israelite kings who preceded him. 3 King Shalmaneser of Assyria marched up to attack[b] him; so Hoshea became his subject and paid him tribute. 4 The king of Assyria discovered that Hoshea was planning a revolt.[c] Hoshea had sent messengers to King So[d] of Egypt and had not sent his annual tribute to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria arrested him and imprisoned him.[e] 5 The king of Assyria marched through[f] the whole land. He attacked Samaria and besieged it for three years. 6 In the ninth year of Hoshea’s reign, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and deported the people of Israel[g] to Assyria. He settled them in Halah, along the Habor (the river of Gozan), and in the cities of the Medes.

A Summary of Israel’s Sinful History

7 This happened because the Israelites sinned against the Lord their God, who brought them up from the land of Egypt and freed them from the power of[h] Pharaoh king of Egypt. They worshiped[i] other gods; 8 they observed the practices[j] of the nations whom the Lord had driven out from before them,[k] and followed the example of the kings of Israel.[l] 9 The Israelites said things about the Lord their God that were not right.[m] They built high places in all their towns, from watchtower to fortified city. 10 They set up sacred pillars and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree. 11 They burned incense on all the high places just like the nations whom the Lord had driven away before them did. Their evil practices made the Lord angry.[n] 12 They worshiped[o] the disgusting idols[p] in blatant disregard of the Lord’s command.[q]

13 The Lord solemnly warned Israel and Judah through all his prophets and all the seers, “Turn back from your evil ways; obey my commandments and rules that are recorded in the law. I ordered your ancestors to keep this law and sent my servants the prophets to remind you of its demands.”[r] 14 But they did not pay attention and were as stubborn as their ancestors,[s] who had not trusted the Lord their God. 15 They rejected his rules, the covenant he had made with their ancestors, and the laws he had commanded them to obey.[t] They paid allegiance to[u] worthless idols, and so became worthless to the Lord.[v] They copied the practices of the surrounding nations in blatant disregard of the Lord’s command.[w] 16 They abandoned all the commandments of the Lord their God; they made two metal calves and an Asherah pole, bowed down to all the stars in the sky,[x] and worshiped[y] Baal. 17 They passed their sons and daughters through the fire,[z] and practiced divination and omen reading. They committed themselves to doing evil in the sight of the Lord and made him angry.[aa]

18 So the Lord was furious[ab] with Israel and rejected them;[ac] only the tribe of Judah was left. 19 Judah also failed to keep the commandments of the Lord their God; they followed Israel’s example.[ad] 20 So the Lord rejected all of Israel’s descendants; he humiliated[ae] them and handed them over to robbers, until he had thrown them from his presence. 21 He tore Israel away from David’s dynasty, and Jeroboam son of Nebat became their king.[af] Jeroboam drove Israel away[ag] from the Lord and encouraged them to commit a serious sin.[ah] 22 The Israelites followed in the sinful ways of Jeroboam and did not repudiate[ai] them. 23 Finally[aj] the Lord rejected Israel[ak] just as he had warned he would do[al] through all his servants the prophets. Israel was deported from its land to Assyria and remains there to this very day.

The King of Assyria Populates Israel with Foreigners

24 The king of Assyria brought foreigners[am] from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim and settled them in the cities of Samaria[an] in place of the Israelites. They took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities. 25 When they first moved in,[ao] they did not worship[ap] the Lord. So the Lord sent lions among them and the lions were killing them. 26 The king of Assyria was told,[aq] “The nations whom you deported and settled in the cities of Samaria do not know the requirements of the God of the land, so he has sent lions among them. They are killing the people[ar] because they do not know the requirements of the God of the land.” 27 So the king of Assyria ordered, “Take back one of the priests whom you[as] deported from there. He must settle there and teach them the requirements of the God of the land.”[at] 28 So one of the priests whom they had deported from Samaria went back and settled in Bethel. He taught them how to worship[au] the Lord.

29 But each of these nations made[av] its own gods and put them in the shrines on the high places that the people of Samaria[aw] had made. Each nation did this in the cities where they lived. 30 The people from Babylon made Sukkoth Benoth,[ax] the people from Cuth made Nergal,[ay] the people from Hamath made Ashima,[az] 31 the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak,[ba] and the Sepharvites burned their sons in the fire as an offering to Adrammelech and Anammelech,[bb] the gods of Sepharvaim. 32 At the same time they worshiped[bc] the Lord. They appointed some of their own people to serve as priests in the shrines on the high places.[bd] 33 They were worshiping[be] the Lord and at the same time serving their own gods in accordance with the practices of the nations from which they had been deported.

34 To this very day they observe their earlier practices. They do not worship[bf] the Lord; they do not obey the rules, regulations, law, and commandments that the Lord gave[bg] the descendants of Jacob, whom he renamed Israel. 35 The Lord made a covenant with them[bh] and instructed them, “You must not worship other gods. Do not bow down to them, serve them, or offer sacrifices to them. 36 Instead you must worship the Lord, who brought you up from the land of Egypt by his great power and military ability;[bi] bow down to him and offer sacrifices to him. 37 You must carefully obey at all times the rules, regulations, law, and commandments he wrote down for you. You must not worship other gods. 38 You must never forget the covenant I made with you, and you must not worship other gods. 39 Instead you must worship the Lord your God; then he will rescue you from the power of all your enemies.” 40 But they[bj] paid no attention; instead they observed their earlier practices. 41 These nations were worshiping the Lord and at the same time serving their idols; their sons and grandsons are doing just as their fathers have done, to this very day.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 17:2 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
  2. 2 Kings 17:3 tn Heb “went up against.”
  3. 2 Kings 17:4 tn Heb “and the king of Assyria found in Hoshea conspiracy.”
  4. 2 Kings 17:4 sn For discussion of this name, see HALOT 744 s.v. סוֹא and M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 196.
  5. 2 Kings 17:4 tn Heb “and bound him in the house of confinement.”
  6. 2 Kings 17:5 tn Heb “went up against.”
  7. 2 Kings 17:6 tn The Hebrew text has simply “Israel” as the object of the verb.
  8. 2 Kings 17:7 tn Heb “and from under the hand of.” The words “freed them” for stylistic reasons replace the term “under.”
  9. 2 Kings 17:7 tn Heb “feared.”
  10. 2 Kings 17:8 tn Heb “walked in the customs.”
  11. 2 Kings 17:8 tn Heb “before the sons of Israel.”
  12. 2 Kings 17:8 tn Heb “and [the practices of] the kings of Israel which they did.”
  13. 2 Kings 17:9 tn The meaning of the verb וַיְחַפְּאוּ (vayekhappeʾu), translated here “said,” is uncertain. Some relate it to the verbal root חָפַה (khafah), “to cover,” and translate “they did it in secret” (see BDB 341 s.v. חָפָא). However, the pagan practices specified in the following sentences were hardly done in secret. Others propose a meaning “ascribe, impute,” which makes good contextual sense but has little etymological support (see HALOT 339 s.v. חפא). In this case Israel claimed that the Lord authorized their pagan practices.
  14. 2 Kings 17:11 tn Heb “and they did evil things, angering the Lord.”
  15. 2 Kings 17:12 tn Or “served.”
  16. 2 Kings 17:12 sn See the note at 1 Kgs 15:12.
  17. 2 Kings 17:12 tn Heb “about which the Lord had said to them, ‘You must not do this thing.’”
  18. 2 Kings 17:13 tn Heb “obey my commandments and rules according to all the law which I commanded your fathers and which I sent to you by the hand of my servants the prophets.”
  19. 2 Kings 17:14 tn Heb and they stiffened their neck like the neck of their fathers.”
  20. 2 Kings 17:15 tn Or “and his warnings he had given them.”
  21. 2 Kings 17:15 tn Heb “They went [or, ‘followed’] after.” This idiom probably does not mean much if translated literally. It is found most often in Deuteronomy or in literature related to the covenant. It refers in the first instance to loyalty to God and to His covenant or His commandments (1 Kgs 14:8; 2 Chr 34:31) with the metaphor of a path or way underlying it (Deut 11:28; 28:14). To “follow other gods” was to abandon this way and this loyalty (to “abandon” or “forget” God, Judg 2:12; Hos 2:13) and to follow the customs or religious traditions of the pagan nations (2 Kgs 17:15). The classic text on “following” God or another god is 1 Kgs 18:18, 21 where Elijah taunts the people with “halting between two opinions” whether the Lord was the true God or Baal was. The idiom is often found followed by “to serve and to worship” or “they served and worshiped” such and such a god or entity (Jer 8:2; 11:10; 13:10; 16:11; 25:6; 35:15).
  22. 2 Kings 17:15 tn Heb “they followed after the worthless thing/things and became worthless.” The words “to the Lord” are not in the Hebrew text but are implicit from the context. There is an obvious wordplay on the verb “became worthless” and the noun “worthless thing”, which is probably to be understood collectively and to refer to idols as it does in Jer 8:19; 10:8; 14:22; Jonah 2:8.
  23. 2 Kings 17:15 tn Heb “and [they walked] after the nations which were around them, concerning which the Lord commanded them not to do like them.”
  24. 2 Kings 17:16 tn The phrase כָל צְבָא הַשָּׁמַיִם (khol tsevaʾ hashamayim), traditionally translated “all the host of heaven,” refers to the heavenly lights, including stars and planets. In 1 Kgs 22:19 these heavenly bodies are pictured as members of the Lord’s royal court or assembly, but many other texts view them as the illegitimate objects of pagan and Israelite worship.
  25. 2 Kings 17:16 tn Or “served.”
  26. 2 Kings 17:17 sn See the note at 2 Kgs 16:3.
  27. 2 Kings 17:17 tn Heb “they sold themselves to doing what was evil in the eyes of the Lord, angering him.”
  28. 2 Kings 17:18 tn Heb “very angry.”
  29. 2 Kings 17:18 tn Heb “turned them away from his face.”
  30. 2 Kings 17:19 tn Heb “they walked in the practices of Israel which they did.”
  31. 2 Kings 17:20 tn Or “afflicted.”
  32. 2 Kings 17:21 tn Heb “and they made Jeroboam son of Nebat king.”
  33. 2 Kings 17:21 tc The consonantal text (Kethib) assumes the verb is נָדָא (nadaʾ), an alternate form of נָדָה (nadah), “push away.” The marginal reading (Qere) assumes the verb נָדָח (nadakh), “drive away.”
  34. 2 Kings 17:21 tn Heb “a great sin.”
  35. 2 Kings 17:22 tn Heb “turn away from.”
  36. 2 Kings 17:23 tn Heb “until.”
  37. 2 Kings 17:23 tn Heb “the Lord turned Israel away from his face.”
  38. 2 Kings 17:23 tn Heb “just as he said.”
  39. 2 Kings 17:24 tn The object is supplied in the translation.
  40. 2 Kings 17:24 sn In vv. 24-29 Samaria stands for the entire northern kingdom of Israel.
  41. 2 Kings 17:25 tn Heb “in the beginning of their living there.”
  42. 2 Kings 17:25 tn Heb “fear.”
  43. 2 Kings 17:26 tn Heb “and they said to the king of Assyria, saying.” The plural subject of the verb is indefinite.
  44. 2 Kings 17:26 tn Heb “Look, they are killing them.”
  45. 2 Kings 17:27 tc The second plural subject may refer to the leaders of the Assyrian army. However, some prefer to read “whom I deported,” changing the verb to a first person singular form with a third masculine plural pronominal suffix. This reading has some support from Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic witnesses.
  46. 2 Kings 17:27 tc Heb “and let them go and let them live there, and let him teach them the requirements of the God of the land.” The two plural verbs seem inconsistent with the preceding and following contexts, where only one priest is sent back to Samaria. The singular has the support of Greek, Syriac, and Latin witnesses.
  47. 2 Kings 17:28 tn Heb “fear.”
  48. 2 Kings 17:29 sn The verb “make” refers to the production of idols. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 210-11.
  49. 2 Kings 17:29 tn Heb “Samaritans.” This refers to the Israelites who had been deported from the land.
  50. 2 Kings 17:30 sn No deity is known by the name Sukkoth Benoth in extant Mesopotamian literature. For speculation as to the identity of this deity, see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 211.
  51. 2 Kings 17:30 sn Nergal was a Mesopotamian god of the underworld.
  52. 2 Kings 17:30 sn This deity is unknown in extra-biblical literature. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 211-12.
  53. 2 Kings 17:31 sn Nibhaz and Tartak were two Elamite deities. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 212.
  54. 2 Kings 17:31 sn Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of the Sepharvaim are unknown in extra-biblical literature. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 212.
  55. 2 Kings 17:32 tn Heb “feared.”
  56. 2 Kings 17:32 tn Heb “and they appointed for themselves from their whole people priests for the high places and they were serving for them in the house[s] of the high places.”
  57. 2 Kings 17:33 tn Heb “fearing.”
  58. 2 Kings 17:34 tn Heb “fear.”
  59. 2 Kings 17:34 tn Heb “commanded.”
  60. 2 Kings 17:35 sn That is, the descendants of Jacob/Israel (see v. 35b).
  61. 2 Kings 17:36 tn Heb “and outstretched arm.”
  62. 2 Kings 17:40 sn This refers to the foreigners whom the king of Assyria settled in the land (see v. 35a).
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2 Kings 17
English Standard Version

Hoshea Reigns in Israel

17 In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah, (A)Hoshea the son of Elah began to reign in Samaria over Israel, and he reigned nine years. 2 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, yet not as the kings of Israel who were before him. 3 (B)Against him came up (C)Shalmaneser king of Assyria. And Hoshea became his vassal and paid him tribute. 4 But the king of Assyria found treachery in Hoshea, for he had sent messengers to So, king of Egypt, and offered no tribute to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year. Therefore the king of Assyria shut him up and bound him in prison. 5 Then the king of Assyria invaded all the land and came to Samaria, and for three years he besieged it.

The Fall of Israel

6 In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria (D)captured Samaria, (E)and he carried the Israelites away to Assyria (F)and placed them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of (G)Gozan, and in the cities of (H)the Medes.

Exile Because of Idolatry

7 And this occurred because the people of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, (I)who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods 8 (J)and walked in the customs of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel, (K)and in the customs that the kings of Israel had practiced. 9 And the people of Israel did secretly against the Lord their God things that were not right. They built for themselves high places in all their towns, (L)from watchtower to fortified city. 10 They set up for themselves (M)pillars and Asherim on every high hill and under every green tree, 11 and there they made offerings on all the high places, as the nations did whom the Lord carried away before them. And they did wicked things, provoking the Lord to anger, 12 and they served idols, (N)of which the Lord had said to them, “You shall not do this.” 13 Yet the Lord (O)warned Israel and Judah (P)by every prophet (Q)and every seer, saying, (R)“Turn from your evil ways and keep my commandments and my statutes, in accordance with all the Law that I commanded your fathers, and that I sent to you by my servants the prophets.”

14 But they would not listen, (S)but were stubborn, as their fathers had been, who did not believe in the Lord their God. 15 They despised his statutes (T)and his covenant that he made with their fathers and the warnings that he gave them. They went after (U)false idols (V)and became false, and they followed the nations that were around them, concerning whom the (W)Lord had commanded them that they should not do like them. 16 And they abandoned all the commandments of the Lord their God, and made for themselves metal images of (X)two calves; and they (Y)made an Asherah and (Z)worshiped all the host of heaven and served (AA)Baal. 17 (AB)And they burned their sons and their daughters as offerings[a] and used (AC)divination and (AD)omens and (AE)sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger. 18 Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel and removed them out of his sight. None was left but (AF)the tribe of Judah only.

19 (AG)Judah also did not keep the commandments of the Lord their God, but walked in the customs that Israel had introduced. 20 And the Lord rejected all the descendants of Israel and afflicted them (AH)and gave them into the hand of plunderers, until he had cast them out of his sight.

21 (AI)When he had torn Israel from the house of David, (AJ)they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king. And Jeroboam drove Israel from following the Lord (AK)and made them commit great sin. 22 The people of Israel walked in all the sins that Jeroboam did. They did not depart from them, 23 until the Lord removed Israel out of his sight, (AL)as he had spoken by all his servants the prophets. (AM)So Israel was exiled from their own land to Assyria until this day.

Assyria Resettles Samaria

24 (AN)And the king of Assyria brought people from (AO)Babylon, Cuthah, (AP)Avva, (AQ)Hamath, and (AR)Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the people of Israel. And they took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities. 25 And at the beginning of their dwelling there, they did not fear the Lord. Therefore the Lord sent lions among them, which killed some of them. 26 So the king of Assyria was told, “The nations that you have carried away and placed in the cities of Samaria do not know the law of the god of the land. Therefore he has sent lions among them, and behold, they are killing them, because they do not know the law of the god of the land.” 27 Then the king of Assyria commanded, “Send there one of the priests whom you carried away from there, and let him[b] go and dwell there and teach them the law of the god of the land.” 28 So one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and lived in (AS)Bethel and taught them how they should fear the Lord.

29 But every nation still made gods of its own and put them (AT)in the shrines of the high places that the Samaritans had made, every nation in the cities in which they lived. 30 The men of (AU)Babylon made Succoth-benoth, the men of Cuth made Nergal, the men of Hamath made Ashima, 31 and the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak; and the Sepharvites (AV)burned their children in the fire to (AW)Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of (AX)Sepharvaim. 32 (AY)They also feared the Lord (AZ)and appointed from among themselves all sorts of people as priests of the high places, who sacrificed for them in the shrines of (BA)the high places. 33 So they feared the Lord but also served their own gods, after the manner of the nations from among whom they had been carried away.

34 To this day they do according to the former manner. They do not fear the Lord, and they do not follow the statutes or the rules or the law or the commandment that the Lord commanded the children of Jacob, (BB)whom he named Israel. 35 The Lord made a covenant with them and commanded them, (BC)“You shall not fear other gods (BD)or bow yourselves to them or serve them or sacrifice to them, 36 but (BE)you shall fear the Lord, (BF)who brought you out of the land of Egypt with great power and (BG)with an outstretched arm. You shall bow yourselves to him, and to him you shall sacrifice. 37 And the statutes and the rules and the law and the commandment that he wrote for you, (BH)you shall always be careful to do. (BI)You shall not fear other gods, 38 and (BJ)you shall not forget the covenant that I have made with you. (BK)You shall not fear other gods, 39 but (BL)you shall fear the Lord your God, and he will deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies.” 40 However, they would not listen, but they did according to their former manner.

41 (BM)So these nations feared the Lord and also served their carved images. Their children did likewise, and their children's children—as their fathers did, so they do to this day.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 17:17 Or made their sons and their daughters pass through the fire
  2. 2 Kings 17:27 Syriac, Vulgate; Hebrew them
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2 Reyes 17
Nueva Versión Internacional (Castilian)

Oseas, rey de Israel(A)

17 En el año duodécimo del reinado de Acaz, rey de Judá, Oseas hijo de Elá ascendió al trono de Israel, y reinó en Samaria nueve años. 2 Hizo lo que ofende al Señor, aunque no tanto como los reyes de Israel que le habían precedido.

3 Salmanasar, rey de Asiria, atacó a Oseas, lo hizo su vasallo y le impuso tributo. 4 Más tarde, el rey de Asiria descubrió que Oseas lo traicionaba, pues este había enviado emisarios a So, rey de Egipto, y además había dejado de pagarle el tributo anual. Por eso el rey de Asiria mandó arrestarlo y lo metió en la cárcel. 5 Después invadió el país entero, marchó contra Samaria y sitió la ciudad durante tres años. 6 En el año noveno del reinado de Oseas, el rey de Asiria, después de conquistar Samaria, deportó a los israelitas a Asiria y los instaló en Jalaj, en Gozán (que está junto al río Jabor) y en las ciudades de los medos.

El pecado de Israel

7 Todo esto sucedió porque los israelitas habían pecado contra el Señor su Dios, que los había sacado de Egipto, librándolos del poder del faraón, rey de Egipto. Adoraron a otros dioses 8 y siguieron las costumbres de las naciones que el Señor había expulsado delante de ellos, como también las prácticas que introdujeron los reyes de Israel. 9 Además blasfemaron[a] contra el Señor su Dios, y dondequiera que habitaban se construían altares paganos. Desde las torres de vigilancia hasta las ciudades fortificadas, 10 y en cada colina y bajo todo árbol frondoso, erigieron piedras sagradas e imágenes de la diosa Aserá; 11 y en todos los altares paganos quemaron incienso, siguiendo el ejemplo de las naciones que el Señor había desterrado delante de ellos. Fueron tantas las maldades que cometieron que provocaron la ira del Señor. 12 Rindieron culto a los ídolos, aunque el Señor se lo había prohibido categóricamente. 13 Por eso el Señor les dio esta advertencia a Israel y a Judá por medio de todos los profetas y videntes: «¡Volveos de vuestros malos caminos! Cumplid mis mandamientos y decretos, y obedeced todas las leyes que ordené a vuestros antepasados, y que os di a conocer a vosotros por medio de mis siervos los profetas».

14 Con todo, no hicieron caso, sino que fueron tan tercos como lo habían sido sus antepasados, que no confiaron en el Señor su Dios. 15 Rechazaron los decretos y las advertencias del Señor y el pacto que él había hecho con sus antepasados. Se fueron tras ídolos inútiles, de modo que se volvieron inútiles ellos mismos; y, aunque el Señor lo había prohibido, siguieron las costumbres de las naciones vecinas. 16 Abandonaron todos los mandamientos del Señor su Dios, y se hicieron dos ídolos fundidos en forma de becerro y una imagen de la diosa Aserá. Se postraron ante todos los astros del cielo y adoraron a Baal; 17 sacrificaron en el fuego a sus hijos e hijas; practicaron la adivinación y la hechicería; en fin, se entregaron a hacer lo que ofende al Señor, provocando así su ira.

18 Por lo tanto, el Señor se enojó mucho contra Israel y lo arrojó de su presencia. Solo quedó la tribu de Judá. 19 Pero aun Judá dejó de cumplir los mandatos del Señor su Dios y siguió las costumbres que introdujo Israel. 20 Por eso el Señor rechazó a todos los israelitas: los afligió y los entregó en manos de invasores, y acabó por arrojarlos de su presencia.

21 Cuando él arrancó de la familia de David a los israelitas, estos hicieron rey a Jeroboán hijo de Nabat. Jeroboán, por su parte, los alejó del camino del Señor y los hizo cometer un gran pecado. 22 De hecho, los israelitas imitaron todos los pecados de Jeroboán y no se apartaron de ellos. 23 Finalmente, el Señor arrojó a Israel de su presencia, tal como lo había anunciado por medio de sus siervos los profetas. Así pues, fueron desterrados y llevados cautivos a Asiria, donde hasta el día de hoy se han quedado.

Repoblación de Samaria

24 Para reemplazar a los israelitas en los poblados de Samaria, el rey de Asiria trajo gente de Babilonia, Cuta, Ava, Jamat y Sefarvayin. Estos tomaron posesión de Samaria y habitaron en sus poblados. 25 Al principio, cuando se establecieron, no adoraban al Señor, de modo que el Señor les envió leones que causaron estragos en la población. 26 Entonces le dieron este informe al rey de Asiria: «La gente que deportaste y estableciste en los poblados de Samaria no sabe lo que requiere el dios de ese país. Por esta razón, él les ha enviado leones, para que los maten».

27 El rey de Asiria dio esta orden: «Haced que regrese a vivir en Samaria uno de los sacerdotes que vosotros capturasteis allí, y que le enseñe a la población lo que requiere el dios de ese país». 28 Así que uno de los sacerdotes que habían sido deportados de Samaria fue a vivir a Betel y comenzó a enseñarles cómo adorar al Señor.

29 Sin embargo, todos esos pueblos se fabricaron sus propios dioses en las ciudades donde vivían, y los colocaron en los altares paganos que habían construido los samaritanos. 30 Los de Babilonia hicieron a Sucot Benot; los de Cuta, a Nergal; los de Jamat, a Asimá, 31 y los de Ava, a Nibjaz y a Tartac. Los de Sefarvayin quemaban a sus hijos como sacrificio a Adramélec y a Anamélec, dioses de Sefarvayin; 32 adoraban también al Señor, pero de entre ellos mismos nombraron sacerdotes a toda clase de gente para que oficiaran en los altares paganos. 33 Aunque adoraban al Señor, servían también a sus propios dioses, según las costumbres de las naciones de donde habían sido deportados.

34 Hasta el día de hoy persisten en sus antiguas costumbres. No adoran al Señor ni actúan según sus decretos y sus normas, ni según la ley y el mandamiento que el Señor ordenó a los descendientes de Jacob, a quien le dio el nombre de Israel. 35 Cuando el Señor hizo un pacto con los israelitas, les ordenó:

«No adoréis a otros dioses ni os inclinéis delante de ellos; no les sirváis ni les ofrezcáis sacrificios. 36 Adorad solo al Señor, que os sacó de Egipto con gran despliegue de fuerza y poder. Es a él a quien debéis adorar y ofrecerle sacrificios. 37 Tened cuidado de cumplir siempre los decretos y ordenanzas, leyes y mandamientos que él os dio por escrito. No adoréis a otros dioses. 38 No olvidéis el pacto que él ha hecho con vosotros. Por tanto, no adoréis a otros dioses, 39 sino solo al Señor vuestro Dios. Y él os librará del poder de vuestros enemigos».

40 Sin embargo, no hicieron caso, sino que persistieron en sus antiguas costumbres. 41 Aquellos pueblos adoraban al Señor, y al mismo tiempo servían a sus propios ídolos. Hasta el día de hoy, sus hijos y sus descendientes siguen actuando como sus antepasados.

Footnotes

  1. 17:9 blasfemaron. Palabra de difícil traducción.
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